General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) confirms that its Mojave Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) destroyed static targets in live-fire tests on April 13, 2024, validating the system’s battlefield relevance and recording another milestone for the demonstrator aircraft. GA-ASI partnered with Dillon Aero to mount two of Dillon’s DAP-6 Gun Pod Systems onto the Mojave aircraft. Mojave performed seven passes across two flights during the demonstration, expending around 10,000 rounds of ammunition as the UAS shredded a variety of targets. The live-fire demonstration took place at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, and was funded via GA-ASI’s internal research and development budget.
“Seeing our Mojave perform this live-fire demo really emphasizes the versatility of the Mojave UAS and what it can do. Mojave has the ability to act as a sensor, shooter, and sustainer while mitigating threat environments and vulnerabilities and safeguarding human lives,” said GA-ASI President David R. Alexander.
The DAP-6 Gun Pod System is a self-contained M134D-H weapon system that mounts to either fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft design by Dillon Aero. Manufactured to hang directly from a NATO Weapons Rack, the DAP-6 Gun Pod presents turnkey accessibility and proven firepower in a discrete and aerodynamic container. It utilizes 7.62x51mm NATO ammunition with M13 links, firing 3,000 rounds per minute. The M134D-H Hybrid Gatling Gun is the standard lightweight Minigun design from Dillon Aero. Utilizing titanium and skeletonized parts, the M-134D-H is designed to offer increased weight savings while retaining the longer service life of the steel gun. The hybrid gun system is between 10-20 pounds lighter than the steel system, and has a service life of 1,500,000.
Mojave and its short takeoff and landing (STOL) capability has built significant interest in the military and aerospace communities. Mojave is unique: a UAS with significant payload capacity that can perform in areas once considered unsuitable for UAS operations. Its ability to take off and land from unimproved landing sites at short distances as well as operate from aircraft carriers – as it did in November 2023 as part of a demonstration with the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy – is capturing imaginations and changing expectations about how large unmanned systems can be used. The Mojave technical demonstrator shares common systems and components with GA-ASI’s modernized Gray Eagle 25M, effectively providing an expeditionary Gray Eagle STOL capability.
